JP Schiller: Lit of Horror, Fantasy, and Sci-Fi

All Readings (5 points) Fragments of a Hologram Rose by William Gibson  (1 point) I found this work to be a little jarring and confusing just in terms of the general jargon related to the use of immersive sensory technology, but once I had re-read it a few times it was easier to understand the context of the world and the character within it. I do hope that someday technology could progress to this level of recording the human experience and then allowing others to participate in that sensation through a recording of it. In some ways, it reminds me of the mechanics of The Giver by Lois Lowry where you can take and receive memories or experiences from others and experience them yourself. I like that it also utilizes the concept that not all recording memories will be pleasant and could also record very dark or tragic moments in people's lives. Rock On by Pat Cadigan (1 point) Okay, a lot more clarity on this one, even if it took me a second to jump from religion to mu...

  (Blood Child by Octavia Butler - Reading Assessment ) 1. What is your reaction to the text you just read?     Shock is a pretty good descriptor in terms of my first reaction, as the story was so different from anything that I've ever read. I'd consider myself an avid reader and have encounters some strange elements in stories, but this takes the lead in the most bizarre. While the story brought some interesting elements into the narrative, it also felt incredibly disturbing and grotesque when the implications of the alien and human relationship had come into focus. I will say I was intrigued by the topics that Butler explored, but the overall concepts of male pregnancy and oviposition are pretty overwhelming topics to a common reader. 2. What connections did you make with the story? Discuss what elements of the story with which you were able to connect?     The main connection that I made to the story was when the protagonist, Gan, was talking about how it fee...

  Artemis by Andy Weir (6 Points) After reading "The Martian," I was pretty intrigued by Weir's work and decided to double back during the jump into Cyber/Steampunk to see what this moon-based book was all about.  I'll start by saying that I have mixed reviews overall of the novel but let's start with the bad: I genuinely believe that Weir gave their own best effort in writing a strong female protagonist, and absolutely flunked it. It basically felt like his character, Mark Watney, had put on a woman-of-Muslim-descent-suit and then traveled out to a moon colony. Many of the interactions, dialogue, and overall emotional responses of the main protagonist, Jazz, just never felt genuine as a young woman surviving on a diverse moonbase, let alone a human being sometimes. Like, she would get close, and then immediately swerve into an over-exaggerated and overly-testosteroned version of what she could have been as a character: strong-willed, independent, and incredibly s...

Babel-17 (5 Points) Alright, there is a ton to unpack here. Firstly, I was completely blown away to learn that this book had been written in the 1960s, and went into the reading believing that it was a contemporary work from the writing alone! (Sure the beauty of the main character being described as "Oriental," children playing marbles, and the phrases like "coal scuttle" should have given it away, but I'm fairly bad at distinguishing these things.) Overall the book was a bit in an out for me and felt very much that I was trying to decipher the language of the novel just as much as the main protagonist was trying to learn about Babel-17. While I found the world-building and spectrum of alien characters to be incredibly fascinating, it was also all very terribly confusing. Which lead me to think that this book was published closer to our current time with its explorative and innovative writing techniques. It definitely didn't feel like a realistic science fi...

 The Martian (6 Points) What are the three things I enjoy about survival stories? One, I like a character that stares the statistically chances of death in the face, shrugs their shoulders, and continues trying to live. Two, I enjoy a setting where the environment actively work against the main characters survival, but still hold hope to save the main character as well. Three, the reuniting of an isolated character back into society with other humans that provides the audience with relief as well a delivering satisfaction. Other key factors to the enjoyment of survival stories is creating realistic scenarios (or at least making it sound believable enough to the audience that they can suspend their disbelief) for the character to survive, as well as how admirable a main character reacts under pressure. This story pretty much had it all, as well as an incredibly funny and relatable main character who the audience roots for from beginning to end. But let's get to the Sci-Fi of it: Thi...

 Anansi Boys (6 Points) Well, I'd certainly say the Gaiman has woven quite a story here, and like many other works of his that I've encountered; these stories always defy the norms of typical fantasy genre by creating a harmonious and often humorous balance between the aspects of the real world as well as the fantastical. I think a lot of the ways that Gaiman seems to deviate from the standards of fantasy is that the real world remains very present and tangible throughout the story, and even characters, places, or objects that are imbued with magical influence or knowledge still have a very tangible feeling to them. I also enjoy that Gaiman doesn't waste time explaining too much of the magic or writing the main characters actual feelings or thoughts, but instead lets their actions throughout his writing speak for itself, and even conversations the characters are brief and succinct. When the fantastical elements are presented by Gaiman, the characters in the world and the au...

Midterm Total:    61 points Zoom Classes Attended: 6 out of 7 classes  (6 points) Official Readings:  ( 41 points total)  ( Links directly to the blog post are embedded as well) * = JP's Absolute Favorites * Frankenstein by Mary Shelly (6 points) Interview with a Vampire   (6 points)  A Wild Sheep Chase (6 points) * Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer (6 points) * Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor (5 points) * The Hobbit (6 points) The Night Circus (6 points) Extra Credit Readings/Viewings:   (14 points total) Frankenstein 1931 Film   (1 point) Gothic: A Lecture   (1 point) * The Haunting of Hill House   (5 points) Nosferatu   1922 Film   (1 point) * Uzumaki Vol. 1 & 2   (6 points)